I have a Verizon Droid, and Verizon has claimed repeatedly not to use CarrierIQ. I even specifically asked the salesperson when I went in yesterday (although she didn't even know what it was, so it didn't help).
However, I don't trust them, and will be rooting and checking for myself as soon as I find time. I was planning to anyways, to clear out the bloatware (nothing too serious - just a few apps that can't be uninstalled, like Facebook and Amazon).
No root needed: https://market.android.com/details?id=org.projectvoodoo.simplecarrieriqdetector&feature=search_result#?t=W251bGwsMSwxLDEsIm9yZy5wcm9qZWN0dm9vZG9vLnNpbXBsZWNhcnJpZXJpcWRldGVjdG9yIl0. Also, if your Droid is the OG (not the 2, D2, X or 3 or any of the other various Droid models), you are clean since mine is clean.
I don't believe so. Verizon says they don't have it on any of their phones; however, I have a Blackberry, so I don't know of any way of knowing for sure.
I'll have to say it sure is disappointing to see this on Android phones, but it's not a surprise, really. With the arrival of affordable tablets, it's getting to the point that I may just get a dumb phone next time around and rely on a tablet for my "smart" functions like mapping and email.
It depends on the Android phone. My OG Droid is clean (but it is VZW), even though its currently stock.
Checks you say.... I haven't written one of those in months.
I write void on them when I setup an ACH account. I guess I could just keep a copy/scan of one but then I would never use them. I remember when I got my first check book. It was the key to my first bank account. I could write an amount on a piece of paper, sign my name and people would give me stuff. Then electronic payments via credit cards/ACH/etc. came. Bill payments seemed like the last to give in. The check book started as something wonderful to me and then ended with the memory of paying bills.
My CU has all the necessary information for ACH accounts online, no checkbook needed. I still write checks though, once a year for the DMV.
That's part of the problem though; its a crap shoot whether your phone will be supported. I was unlucky and bought an HTC Hero. It had one major update, but that was it. They stopped supporting my phone less than 1 year into my 3 year contract. Looking at the graph, its sad to see that there is no clear "winner" in terms of manufacturers that support their phones. It seems that they decided to maintain only some of their phones (eg. Motorola Droid, HTC Evo, and Samsung Galaxy). When I buy my next phone, how do I know if I'm buying an Evo or a Hero? Do I just pray that my phone is the one deemed worthy of support?
Simple, buy a Nexus.
Old programmers never die, they just hit account block limit.
